We at The Post wanted to inspire a new generation of journalists to inform, entertain, to hold power to account and to stand up for New Yorkers in the future.
Out of those conversations the New York Post Scholars Contest was born, in partnership with Command Education, a national leader in education and college consulting.
The contest was open to high school students living in the Tri-State area. We were delighted by the response—hundreds of students submitted eye-catching and well- researched news stories, opinion pieces and feature articles on a variety of topics, ranging from AI, advocacy for the disabled, to a school in need of a new building, and badminton.
The team and I spent hours combing through each qualifying article, looking for entries that showed a depth of research, quotes from those involved that brought the writing to life, and took in both sides of an argument. The exercise really did give us an invaluable insight into the lives of schoolkids today.
We also evaluated writing styles and the intrinsic interest of the selected topics. We received many entries that were brilliant and brave and controversial—in the finest traditions of the New York Post.
In this special Scholars section, we’ve included the top three submissions and 11 honorable mentions. We’re proud to recognize all of the writers published in this section with an invitation to the New York Post for a special Scholars Masterclass. The top three honorees will also receive an immersive New York Post Discovery Day tailored to their interests, a college prep training session with our partner, Command Education, and a grant for their school!
It is often seen as a bit of a cliche to say that it was very difficult to narrow down the winners in competitions of this type—but it really was!
I wanted to extend our appreciation to everyone who participated, because it is clear that an enormous amount of effort was put in by so many students who went above and beyond in fitting this into their extremely busy lives.
Congratulations to the 3rd annual class of New York Post Scholars!
— Keith Poole, Editor-in-Chief